The CNY Fall Boat Show will be unlike any other in its long history at the New York State Fairgrounds when it opens to the public on Friday in the new Exposition Center. This is the first major event outside the 13-day Fair to take place in the recently unveiled facility. The show features new and used boats for sale along with accessories and services for boaters. It will be open from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $5 per person, with children 13 and under admitted for free.

The show moves from the Center of Progress Building, which it had filled in previous years. With the added space available in the Expo Center, New York's oldest and largest fall boat show has expanded, adding three additional boat dealers this year. Seventeen boat dealers will now be on hand, offering hundreds of new, demonstration and clean pre-owned late model powerboats and sailboats, including sport boats and cruisers.

"The Boating Industry Association of Upstate New York has had a relationship with the Fairgrounds since the 1960's and to be first to use this beautiful new Expo Center is incredibly exciting for all of us," said Drew Wickham, show manager. "With our larger winter show just a few months away, this gives us a chance to see what this building has to offer and how we can best put it to use."

"We are pleased that our longtime partners believe the Expo Center is a good fit for them and even more pleased to know that it is helping them to expand. This building is helping us to achieve the state's vision of a fairgrounds that is busier than ever, providing even greater economic benefits to Central and Upstate New York," said Troy Waffner, fair director.

The Expo Center received rave reviews from fairgoers when it debuted on Opening Day of the 2018 Great New York State Fair. It is the largest clear-span building north of New York City between Boston and Cleveland. The building features 110,000 square feet of open space that can be used for anything from conventions to trade shows to equestrian competitions. It is part of the more than $120 million, multi-year effort to revitalize the State Fair and Fairgrounds and create a year-round source of significant economic benefits for the region.

The building's calendar for the remainder of 2018 and through 2019 is filling quickly with many events that will be new to Upstate New York as well as some existing events that will use the Expo Center to make their shows more convenient or allow them to grow. Events currently scheduled for the rest of the year include:

In 2019, new events include a Winter Fair in February, an indoor auto racing event in March, and a national collegiate horse show in May. Some existing events are either moving to or, in the case of existing multi-building event, adding the Expo Center for 2019.

The Expo Center will boost what is already strong annual growth for non-Fair events at the Fairgrounds. Estimated attendance at 189 public non-Fair events in 2017 soared 57% to 832,048. The number of events rose 16% and the number of event-days, 732, was a 12% increase from 2016. The Fairgrounds remains on track to break all of its existing records in 2018, and, combined with the 1.26 million people who attended the 2018 Great New York State Fair, rise well above the 2 million mark in total visitation for the first time.

Thursday's announcement complements "CNY Rising," the region's comprehensive blueprint to generate robust economic growth and community development. The State has already invested more than $4.7 billion in the region since 2012 to lay the groundwork for the plan - capitalizing on global market opportunities, strengthening entrepreneurship and creating an inclusive economy. Today, unemployment is down to the lowest levels since before the Great Recession; personal and corporate income taxes are down; and businesses are choosing places like Syracuse, Oswego and Auburn as a destination to grow and invest in.

Now, the region is accelerating CNY Rising with a $500 million State investment through the Upstate Revitalization Initiative, announced in December 2015. The State's $500 million investment will incentivize private business to invest well over $2.5 billion - and the region's plan, as submitted, projects up to 5,900 new jobs.